Ann Widdecombe was struck 21 times with a hammer, court hears

Ann Widdecombe was struck 21 times with a hammer before her wallet was robbed, prosecutors have told a court.

The allegations emerged today (21 July) as Joshua Kerry appeared before Westminster Magistrates’ Court charged with murdering the former Conservative minister and Reform UK spokesperson. The 28-year-old, from Rotherham, was remanded in custody ahead of a hearing at the Old Bailey later the same day. He did not enter a plea.

Widdecombe, who died aged 78, was one of Britain’s most prominent social conservatives. During her political career she repeatedly opposed LGBTQ+ equality, voting against measures including equalising the age of consent for gay men and the repeal of Section 28, and later campaigning against same-sex marriage and expressing support for so-called conversion therapy.

What do prosecutors allege happened to Ann Widdecombe?

Opening the prosecution’s case, Kashif Malik alleged Kerry drove to Widdecombe’s home in Haytor, Devon, in a red Vauxhall Corsa on 8 July before entering through the front door.

The court heard Widdecombe was eating lunch when Kerry approached her and asked: “Don’t suppose you have bank cards and ID?”

Prosecutors allege Kerry, who was wearing black gloves, then struck Widdecombe 21 times with a hammer, knocking her from her chair before taking her wallet. The court heard he spent around two minutes inside the property before driving away.

Malik said CCTV recovered from inside Widdecombe’s home captured the alleged attack.

The investigation into Widdecombe’s death continues

Widdecombe had been due to take part in an online interview with Channel 5’s Matt Allwright programme shortly before 1pm that day. When she failed to join, members of the production team contacted her personal assistant, who later asked her gardener to check on her.

The gardener entered the property through the open front door on 9 July and found Widdecombe lying face down on the kitchen floor with a serious head injury.

A pathologist has given a provisional cause of death as blunt force trauma to the head. However, an inquest opened earlier on Tuesday heard that, although a post-mortem examination had taken place, “at this stage the precise medical cause of death has yet to be established”.

The prosecution also told the court that detectives are continuing to investigate whether the alleged murder was politically motivated or linked to terrorism. Counter Terrorism Policing is leading the investigation after evidence uncovered during the inquiry prompted specialist officers to take over the case.

Kerry spoke only to confirm his name, date of birth and address during the brief hearing. He faces one charge of murder.